Tie guard



y 9, 1966 J. c. LITTLE ETAL 3,261,531

T I E GUARD Filed Dec. 10, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Fi 9 a I NTORS JG :5 C. 'if/e BY Tom 6 I'Foberi L. li

KTTORNEY July 19, 1966 J. c. LITTLE ETAL TIE" GUARD 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 10, 1964 INVENTOR.

C L E u 1 f ecs F ATTOR NEY y 19, 1966 J. c. LITTLE ETAL 4 3,261,581

- TIE GUARD Filed Dec. 10, 1964 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 j INVENTOR. JessC. Lile X E0 "fL.(

ATTORNEY July 19, 1966 J. c. LITTLE ETAL TI E GUARD 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Dec. 10, 1964 INVENTOR. Jess C. L/(he.

Faber-1L. ?e 4!. W

ATTORNEY United States Patent 3,261,581 TIE GUARD Jess C. Little, Cleveland Heights, Tom E. Butz, Chagrin Falls, and Robert L. Reese, Rocky River, Ohio, assignors to The Fanner Manufacturing Company, a Division of Textron Inc., Cleveland, Ohio, a corporation of Rhode Island Filed Dec. 10, 1964, Ser. No. 417,433 15 Claims. (Cl. 248-63) This invention relates to improvements in means for securing or suspending a wire, strand or cable to or from a support which includes but is not limited to insulators, insulator strings or sheaves carried by a clevis. More particularly it relates to a preformed line tie and reinforcement of the general class as shown in the Quayle Patent No. 3,127,140, of March 31, 1964.

As is well known to those versed in the art, it is common practice to place a line in a top groove of an insulator or support, or in the top of a circumferential groove where the axis of the support is horizontal or in the saddle of a clamp Where the line rests in the bottom of the groove. The line is then tied to the support by soft annealed wire by Wrapping the wire around the strand and the support or by clamps of various kinds.

The installation of the above devices required a considerable amount of skill on the part of the workman, when the line was tied, to provide a tie which would hold for a reasonable length of time.

The use of clamps lead to increased pressure points which cause failure.

The above devices also had the disadvantage that the line, where it engaged the support, partook of bending moments due to swinging or vibration of the line, which eventually caused fatigue of the line in a concentrated zone and resulted in breakage. The breakage was progressive in character, some of the individual wires breaking first and others subsequently so that the power handling capacity and the strength of the line gradually deteriorated until it finally completely failed. Upon failure, the line frequently fell to the ground where it was a shock hazard until the power was cut 011?.

In the above-mentioned Quayle patent, it was contemplated that the line be held away from the support. This is very practical when the line is supported from either side or the bottom, but, when the line is placed above, which is frequently done because of the added safety factor, there comes a time when the weight of the line may overcome the resiliency of the parts which hold it away from the bottom of the groove; at such time the tie is distorted so that the line rests in the bottom of the groove. Under such conditions, when the line vibrates in a vertical direction, the lin'e bounces up and down in the groove and is hammered against the bottom of the support. This causes a work hardening of the line at that point, which eventually leads to its breakage. This action also vibrated the hardware used in conjunction with the support, frequently causing failure thereof. In addition, there is a bending moment at the point where the line is tied which decr'eases the line life.

By the present invention a line tie has been designed where the line is held securely against the support and cannot bounce against the bottom thereof. In addition, the line is materially reinforced at that point and in a zone on either side of the point, due to the design of the tie, so that the bending of the line is substantially eliminated. Thus, the line is held rigidly .at the support but may partake of a movement outwardly spaced longitudinally from the support. The design is such that the bending movements are restrained the greatest at the support and this restraint gradually de- "ice creases as it extends away from the support, there being the least restraint at the end of the tie.

The new construction not only provides the above operative advantage but also has the important advantage that the device is much less costly than comparable devices. There is also the advantage that the tie can be quickly and easily applied, by persons with a minimum of skill, in a quicker and more facile manner. In addition, the use of the tie leads to uniformity of the ties. Due to the fact that clamps are eliminated, there is an abs'ence of high pressure points which caused failures. Should the line eventually break, the gripping power of the line holding portion prevents the line from pulling through and falling and usually the failure can be located prior to the falling, by the usual periodic and casual inspection.

The above is accomplished by the design of the tie which is such that, when it is applied to the line and support, th'ere is a distortion of the tie which, after it is applied, causes an improved operation of the device Where it engages the line and the support. When the tie is on the line and the support, there is a first portion in engagement with the support which is flanked by side portions that extend out of contact with the support and which have a composite stored energy th'erein at the time of its application that results in a spring loading as well as a torsional loading on succeeding parts which contact with the support. These last parts then have portions which surround and reinforce the line. Finally, there are parts which extend from the reinforcing part that hold the line, control the bending of the line and have a vibration absorbing effect on the line.

Still other advantages of the invention, and the invention itself, will become more apparent from the following description of some embodiments thereof which are illustrated by the accompanying drawings and form a part of this specification.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of a preformed helical element prior to bending, to make the tie of the invention;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the tie after it is bent from the element of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a view at right angles to FIG. 2;

FIG. 3a is a plan view of the element of FIGS. 2 and 3;

FIG. 4 is an elevational view of an element, similar to that of FIG. 1, but with a portion intermediate the ends which had a hard twist or cable conformation;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational view showing the end of an insulator and With a fragment of a line disposed in the top side of the groove of the insulator and held in place by the improved tie of the invention;

FIG. 6 is a top plan view thereof;

FIG. 7 is an enlarged view taken from the line 77 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a section taken on the line 88 of FIG. 5

FIG. 9 is a diagrammatic view for the purpose of illustrating the parts and operation of the invention;

FIG. 10 is an elevational view illustrating the use of the tie with a clevis and sheave suspended from an insulator;

FIG. 11 is a view, similar to FIG. 7, of a modification of the invention;

FIGS. 12 and 13 are sections of the lines 12-12 and 1313 of FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 is a diagrammatic view, similar to that of FIG. 12 of the device of FIG. 11;

FIG. 15 is a view similar to that of FIGS. 7 and 11, of another modification where the wires in the bight are formed from an element having straight portions prior to bending;

FIG. 16 is a view similar to that of FIG. 15 of a modification where the bight is formed from wires that are twisted together to form a cable-like formation;

FIG. 17 is a top plan view of a modified form of support for use with the tie shown in FIGS. 4 and 16;

FIG. 18 is a side elevational view of the devices of FIG. 17; and

FIG. 19 is a bottom plan view thereof.

In the drawings, like parts will be designated by like reference characters.

As is well known to those versed in the art, helically preformed armor rods have come into use and in the more common form, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 of the Ruhlrnan Patent No. 2,947,504, the rods are each in the form of a preformed open helix of hard drawn resilient material. The pitch of the helices is sufliciently open that the rods may be applied to a line from their sides Without permanent deformation. The inner diameter of the rods is normally less than that of the line to which they are applied, and, when applied, they hug the line tightly. Usually the pitch length is less than that of the line and may be either in the same or reverse direction as that of the line.

It is customary to assemble the rods 8 in groups by intertwisting the rods, without bending, with each other. If there are sufiicient rods in a group that, when applied. to line one-half of the line would be covered, they are! termed a half lay. Such assemblies are then cemented to hold them together to provide an integral element 9. Such an element then has the appearance of an edge laminated ribbon formed into a helix as illustrated in FIG. 1. The inner surface of the helical element may be provided with a suitable gritty material, such as aluminum oxide cemented thereto, to increase the subsequent holding power when applied to a line. This material can be on the line gripping parts alone or also on the support gripping parts.

Heretofore it was contemplated using such elements (half lays) to provide a suspension means as illustrated in the aforesaid Ruhlman patent. In the patented disclosure, however, two such elements were required and there was considerable difficulty and skill needed to assemble the devices with the line. Patent No. 3,127,140 to Quayle contemplated the use of a single element which could be a half or less than a half lay of rods, but this had certain disadvantages previously noted.

In the present invention a half or partial lay, such as described, is bent to provide a bight 10, as shown in FIG. 2, having a pair of legs 11 which cross over to provide a bight portion of 360. It will be noted that, as. viewed in FIG. 2, that the bight as illustrated is of pear shape and the legs cross over at an angle of approximately 90 to each other. As will later appear more clearly, the length of the pitch and the bend are correlated to provide the improved device when attached to the support and the line. In its preferred form, the legs 11, as viewed in FIG. 3, also diverge laterally from each other starting from approximately the mid portion of the bight. As will later appear, this divergence and the angle at which the legs cross over, in combination with the particular construction of the bight, provide a highly improved operation. It is contemplated, however, that highly improved devices could be made, omitting the divergence and the particular angle at which the legs cross over. In the drawings, as viewed in FIG. 2, the left leg crosses over the right leg from the right side of the bight and also is inclined toward the observer while the right leg inclines away from the observer. The left leg could cross over behind the right leg instead of in front thereof with the legs inclined in opposite directions to that illustrated. As will later appear more fully in either formation when the legs are moved toward each other, it causes a twisting in the bight resulting in a stored energy which contributes to the new and improved results. This is due to the fact that at the point where the legs cross over they are also spaced apart.

FIGS. 5 to 7 inclusive, show the device installed on a line and support 14. The support may actually be an insulator, a sheave of metal or other material. It may be of circular, eliptical or oval cross section. The more common way to make the installation, contemplates that the line L be laid in the top side of the groove of the support where it rests prior to tying. Then the bight of the device is placed around the support with the apex 10a diametrically opposite the point of tangency of the line to the support. The divergence of the legs, which causes the bight to be open at the leg ends facilitates this step in the installation. One of the legs 11 is then wrapped around the line extending in one direction away from the support and afterwards the other leg is pulled to cause a bending in the bight and to tighten the bight around the support, and then wrapped around the line which extends in the other direction away from the support.

The line may have the usual armoring applied to it prior to the application of the device, if desired.

When finally applied, the line is held in the bottom of the groove of the support and cannot bounce relative to the support.

As previously mentioned, the dimensions of the device, such as pitch length, inner and outer diameter of the helical elements and the size of the bight, are so correlated with that of the support and the line that, when applied thereto, a new mode of operation and superior results are obtained. The construction and the mode of operation can best be explained by reference to FIGS. 7 and 9.

As previously stated, the basic element 9 is made from a half or partial lay of elements, thus it has the basic ap- .pearance of a laminated helical ribbon. It can be understood that if such a ribbon-like element is wrapped around a support, that at some places the outer mid-portion of the ribbon, considering the ribbon from points transversely across the ribbon, would have contact with the support and that other places the edges of the ribbon would contact the support and that the degree of contact would depend on the amount of tightening of the bight on the support. As shown in FIG. 7, and diagrammatically in FIG. 9, the outer surface 10b of this helical ribbon, which at this point is inside and at the apex of the bight, is engaged with the support at a point diametrically opposite to the point of tangency T of the line to the support. When the tie is placed in position there is a Zone from to 10d which extends laterally from each side of the apex wherein the element is distorted during application. This distortion is the result of two components. The one component is a bending that is effected by bending and/or tightening of the bight around the support, which occurs when the legs are moved down from the position shown in FIG. 2 to the position shown in FIG. 5 when they are wrapped around the line to bring them into a position that is at or beyond a horizontal alignment. This may be accomplished by pulling on the leg to increase the tightness of the bight on the support. This is a bending that is particularly noticeable in the zone 10c-10d and the apex point 10b acts as a fulcrum for the bending.

The other component is a torsional twisting which occurs when the two legs are brought into longitudinal alignment from the position shown in FIG. 3 as they are forced over toward each other and wrapped around the line. This eliminates the lateral divergence of the legs. It results in the parts of the helix in the bight in substantially the same but somewhat shorter zone being twisted, which causes the helix to be twisted to cause some opening of the helix. If the legs were crossed over with the left leg behind the right leg, this could cause some closing of the helix. In either event, there is a resultant torsional energy stored in the helix.

In the drawings, FIG. 7 shows the contact of the apex b with the support as well as contact of substantially the entire zone from 10c to 10d. In FIG. 9 the apex 10b is shown as being slightly away from the support. This is shown in such a manner in order to more clearly depict the zones.

The result is that there is a zone from 100 to 10d on opposite sides of the apex where the element is held against the support due to the bending distortion. At the same time, there are forces, since the distortion is not permanent, tending to move the end parts of the zone Mic-10d outward since the point 1% can be said to be a fulcrum point. The rods at the apex, because of the distortion, are to some extent crowded together, because during the actual bending at the time of installation, these rods may break their cementitious bond, thus giving them added independence of possible movement. At the same time there is the twisting distortion in the bight which causes the legs to try and move apart to their original divergence.

At each end of the zone 10c-10d, the helical conformation of the element causes the element to lose contact with the support and there are therefore two zones 10d- 10c and 10c-10f, the first of which runs counterclockwise and the other. clockwise around the support, and these zones, as stated, are spaced outwardly from the bottom of the support groove with the edges of the ribbon contacting the support at the ends of the zone. It will be appreciated that the length of all of the zones and the degree of contact will be dependent on the length of the pitch of the elements, each of the zones being substantially one-half a pitch length long. The degree of bending depends on the diameter of the support and the tightness with which the 'legs are pulled during installation. It is noted, however, that the legs preferably need not be pulled longitudinally but merely pulled toward the line to move them into position to effect the installation. At the same time, the zone lengths may vary slightly, depending upon the size and strength of the rods which go to make up the element. Therefore, it will be apparent that the length of these zones will vary Within reasonable limits, depending upon the parameters of the element, the support and the line. Largely, however, the character of the contact is determined by whether the inside or outside of the helices are in contact with the support.

At the end of the zones 10d-10e and 10c-107 there are two succeeding zones 10e-10g and 10f-10h again running counterclockwise and clockwise respectively, where the outer surface of the helical element starts in engagement with the bottom of the support groove at 10c and 10] and then extends away from the support to the points 10g and 1011, which may be the points where a full engagement of the elements with the line is realized. At the zone 10e-1tlg the point 10c engages the support and it leaves about the middle of the pitch length and extends away from the support. Then on the one side at 10g it runs outwardly into full engagement with the near underside of the line, then in full contact around the line on the near side and over the top. Likewise the other part, starting at 10f from the opposite direction, leaves the support, extends under the line and then up around the line on the far or opposite side and finally over the line. Both parts extend over in contact with the line in opposite directions and closely adjacent to each other directly opposite the point of tangency of the line to the support. Sometimes there may be actual contact with each other on the top side of the line. Actually, by proper design, the line may have the elements extending between the lineand the support at the point of tangency of the line to the support. This particular feature is a controllable variable. That is, by correlating the, pitch length of the helical element with that of the diameterof the support at the bottom of the groove, as indicated by the dimension line D on FIG. 9, the tie element can be made to be interposed between the line and the support or, when desired, to actually cause the line to bottom in the suport.

p As stated, the next part of the element again going in the counterclockwise direction, comes up from the point 10g on the under side, as viewed in FIGS. 7 and 9, and passes around the line on the near side to point 10k, which is on top of the line. Likewise, the other side going in a clockwise direction comes up from the far side at 1011 and passes over the top to point 10 The parts lg-10k and 101140;, if the element is a half lay, form substantially a full lay on the line at and on a zone toeither size of the point of tangency for the line. Thus the line may be substantially completely surrounded, reinforced and stiffened by this encompassment. Again, it is pointed out that the degree of complete coverage will depend upon parameters previously discussed.

Following the last mentioned points of engagement with the line, the element which extended around the support counterclockwise extends along and around the line in an extended zone 10p, as indicated by the bracket in FIG. 5, and the element which went around the support clockwise extends along and around the line in another extended zone 10: similarly indicated in FIG. 5.

It is apparent that the device is quickly and easily installed on a line without the need for special equipment and by persons having less than ordinary skill. Once installed on the line, the zone lilo-10d provides a dual function. The first or middle portion of the zone provides a fulcrum, the resultant forces being a tendency of the points 10c and 10d to move outward which is transmitted to the next succeeding zones. This force tends to pull the line engaging parts 10g-10k and Nth-10 toward each other and they in turn pull the line toward the bottom of the groove.

As previously mentioned, there was also a torsional force set up on the zone lilo-10d. This is transmitted through the zones 10d-10e and -101 to the zones 10e10g10lc on one side of the line and through zones 10f-10h-10j to the other side of the line. The resultant forces on opposite side of the line are in opposite directions which causes the zones 10g-10k and 10h-10j to embrace the line more securely.

Since the parts 10g-10k and 1011-101, which result in socket-likemembers, may substantially completely surround the line, the line is rigidly reinforced at this point. This reinforcement is not of a passive nature but one where a continuous compressive force is being realized against the line parts to thus hold the line against bending and compressing or crowding the line parts toward each other. In addition, the line may be protected from direct contact with the bottom of the insulator.

Also, as previously mentioned, the parts which extend from the support S along the line, reinforce each other at their proximity to the support, to prevent bending of the line in a zone at the support, which bending resistance gradually decreases from the support out toward the ends of the tie. Thus, the vibration of the end of the tie is gradually absorbed as it proceeds toward the support. In addition, the zones 10e10g and 10f-10h are operative to assist in this damping, due to the difference in deflection between the adjacent wires as well as the resistance to internal movement within the wires themselves which is increased by the tension placed on the wires during installation.

It is pointed out that the tie may be coated with a suitable plastic material, which may be semi-conductive, to protect it against weather, increase its holding power and provide electrical insulation properties, if desired, or when it is conductive provide electrical contact with the line.

FIG. 10 shows the support used in conjunction with a sheave 30,'supported by a clevis 31 which in turn is connected to an insulator 32. This insulator could be the bottom insulator of an insulator string, if desired;

As previously stated, the exact positions of the bight parts on the support are determined by the dimensions of the rods, the diameter and the pitch length of the helix, and the size of the support. It is contemplated that the design may be such that instead of the outside of the helix being in engagement with the insulator opposite to the point of tangency T of the line, the edges of the helix at the apex have contact with the insulator as shown in FIG. 11 and diagrammatically in FIG. 14. In this instance, the portion of the bight between the points and P represents one-half pitch length and th points 0 and P are the points where the outside of the helix engages the support. Between these points at the apex Q the edges of the helical ribbon may be in contact with the support although in the diagram, in the interest of clarity, these edges are shown spaced from the support. Therefore, under normal installation conditions there is contact with the support at O, P and Q, albeit the contact at Q may be lighter than at O' and P, due to the bending of this zone during application.

Next, the two oppositely running bight portions extend from O to R and P to S. Each of these zones is substantially one half a pitch length long and in these zones the outside of the helix has contact with the support throughout most of its length. The zone OR, as it approaches the line leaves the support and extends upwardly around the line on the far side, as viewed in the drawing. The zone PS, as it approaches the line, leaves the support and extends upward around the line on the near side. Next, following the last-mentioned zones, the elements extend over the top side of the line. At the place where they meet on top of the line, they extend alongside, but in opposite directions to, each other and there may actually be contact between the adjacent helix edges at the top of the line. As described for the other embodiment, the legs are each wrapped around the line, extending in opposite directions.

The operation is similar to that of the previously described device and, although the forces applied between the tie and the insulator are dimensionally at slightly different places, the results attained are very similar. Again there is the crowding of the rods at Q which is the apex of the bight that acts as a fulcrum, albeit there is a greater distributed contact both circumferentially as well as transversely. The turn of the helices on each side is such that there is substantially one-half pitch length on either side which causes the exterior of the helix slightly beyond the diameter D to be in engagement with the sup port, as illustrated in FIGS. 11 and 14, the same as in the previous embodimennt. The stored energy in the element between the points Q and O on one side and Q and P on the other side cause those portions 0 and R, and P and S, to be urged outwardly, which pulls the line engaging parts, which are in close contact with the line in balanced relation on each side of a center line through the support and are on opposite sides, into a line-gripping relation therewith, resulting in a reinforcement of the line in a zone on each side of the point of tangency. Again it is pointed out that the element almost completely surrounds the line at the point of tangency, reinforcing the line and holding it securely in the bottom of the support groove. The twisting of the helix in the zone O-P also has the same functional results as in the previous embodiment.

It is apparent that with both of these embodiments the resistance to pull through of the line can be increased. Should there be a tendency for the line to pull through, the use of friction means 13 on the inside of the element (see FIGS. 5, l2 and 13) causes the adjacent parts to more firmly engage each other. When the friction means is also on the outside of the element, so that it engages the support, the tendency of the bight to turn on the support is reduced and this enhances the pull through resistance because there is additional anchoring of the zones OR and PS. Obviously, when the support is of a cross section other than circular, the tendency for a relative movement between the bight and the support is resisted even more with the result that once installed any longitudinal movement of the line relative to the support is greatly resisted.

In FIG. 15 there is shown still another embodiment of the invention wherein the bight portion instead of being made of helical rods is made from rods having a center portion to form the bight that is substantially straight, prior to bending, but still retains the helical legs and the helical line engaging and reinforcing portion adjacent the support.

In this instance the bight, which will be termed straight to distinguish it from the preceding embodiments, because it is made from rods which are not helica'l in that portion of the bight, has the straight portion extending from the apex 5G in opposite directions around the support for approximately three fourths of the circumference of the support. Between these points and slightly beyond the diameter D, the rods are in substantially parallel alignment prior to installation. That is, their axes fall on a straight transverse line which is parallel to the axis of the support. Slightly beyond the diameter of the support and toward the line, the rods partake of a gradual revolution of so that they come up alongside the line parallel to each other with the axes still in alignment and such that a transverse line through the combined axes would be parallel to the line axis. At the point where they contact the line, the helices start and proceed around the line in the usual manner.

Opposite to the point of tangency of the line to the support there is the [fulcrum point U and the bending of the rods between U and T, and U and V. The zones between TR and VS are where the rods turn and which are effected by the bending tension in the apex portion as well as the torsional stored energy which cause the line engaging portions to operate in a similar manner.

It is also contemplated that the major portion of the bight could be made from an element where the bight portion of the rods is twisted, prior to bending, to provide a hard twist or cabled zone 21, such as shown in FIG. 4 of the drawings. Such a device is shown installed on a support in FIG. 16. The action of this device is to an extent similar to that last described.

This embodiment, as in the other embodiments, has the general configuration prior to installation of that shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, except of course the hard twisted bight. Again it has the fulcrum point X on the support. This portion of the bight during installation is distorted by bending and twisting the same as the other, although the energy stored may be somewhat greater due to the fact that it is a hard twist.

In this instance, however, it is always the exterior of the hard twisted portion that has contact with the support and the degree of contact depends on the diameter D of the support, the length of the hard twisted portion and where the open helical line engaging part starts. Again there is the zone X'-X" where the greatest part of the bending and twisting during installation occurs. The above force is transmitted to the zones X"-Y and X-Y, the positions Y and Y being the place where the helical legs start their engagement with the line. The outward bending forces cause the helices at the top of the line to be pushed toward each other, which pulls the line toward the support and the twisting forces cause the parts at the point of tangency to the support to be pushed an opposite directions, these joint forces causing that part of the line at the point of tangency to the support to grip the line securely and reinforce the line the greatest at the support. Then, as in the other devices, the legs extend around the line in opposite directions. Due to the fact that the line is resiliently reinforced to the greatest extent at the support, it will be apparent that at points progressmg outwardly of the support greater flexibility is realized. Vibrations of the line first meet with a slight damping eifect at the ends of the support and this effect increases gradually toward the support, thus eliminating any abrupt discontinuity but with a gradually increased damping effect from the outer ends in toward the support.

It is pointed out that in the first two embodiments where the helical element is bent, the helix in the apex of the bight is permanently distorted, which may cause a slight opening of the helix at the apex and a slight closing in the helices flanking the apex. This opening of the apex caused a slightly greater flexibility in this zone, enabling it to more closely conform to the surfaces of the support to which it is applied. At the same time the apex zone does not have the same degree of curvature as the flanking zones and when it is applied to the support the apex engages securely with the support while the parts flanking the apex in the apex zone are bent, but not necessarily beyond their elastic limits, with result that the ends of the zones have the tendency to pull away from the support while pulling is transmitted to the side zones of the bight. In the case where the apex is formed from the straightened wires, an even greater degree of flexibility is added to the apex zone. In the hard twisted bight the configuration will fit into a smaller groove.

As was previously stated, the tie engaged part of the support could take various conformations other than circular cross-section, one purpose being to prevent rotation of the bight of the tie relative to the support.

In FIGS. 17 to 19 inclusive is shown another form of support particularly adapted for use with the tie having the hard twist or cabled bight where an auxiliary support means extends from the main body of the support and provides means for limiting the movement of the line and prevents rotation of the tie on the support.

The support comprises a main body 60 having a central opening for the reception of the clevis pin 61, whereby the arms of a clevis or shackle 62 may be used to support it, these arms being secured to the usual insulator string, such as illustrated in FIG. 10. Obviously the means for connecting the same to a pole could be other means than that shown and described. The body 60 is formed with a groove 63 which surrounds it, the groove extending at an angle, which may vary but is shown in the drawings as a being at approximately 30 to the center of the line. Arms 64 extend from the body in opposite directions under the line L. The upper surface of each arm slants downwardly at an angle which is approximately that of the line and is preferably formed with a shallow groove 65. The upper surfaces of the arms are not necessarily straight lines but are preferably slightlycurved from the mid-line of the support toward the end so that they are spaced slightly from the line toward the ends. The drawing shows the line and the reinforcement spaced above the support lines in the interest of clarity of description. The bottom of the groove 65 merges with the groove 63 on each side with-out any abrupt discontinuities where the groove crosses the support. The support is formed with outwardly projecting ear portions 66 which form walls in prolongation of the groove on opposite sides. The bottom of the arms may take any desired formation but it is preferred that they be substantially as shown. The main function of the bottom part is to provide a degree of rigidity to each arm, although it is contemplated that the arms could have a certain degree of flexibility, in which event they would be considerably narrower in height toward the end.

In use, the tie guard is preferably the one with the hard twist or cabled bight although either of the other embodiments may be used.

When the cable bight is used, the device is placed around the support with the apex X in the bot-tom side. Because of the angle of the groove 63, a greater spacing of the legs from the line is realized where they come up from the bottom of the groove on opposite sides, as best seen in FIG. 17, between the sides of the support and the ears 66. The top sides of the bight then extend toward each other. The hard twist portions merge with the open helix leg portion where they come up beyond the confines of the groove, as shown in FIG. 18, with the helices of each leg engaging with the line at the point where they come up alongside the line. They then extend over and around the line in opposite directions as in the preceding embodiments.

The usual bending takes place in the apex of the bight. Due to the slanting of the top and the thickness of the support, as viewed from the top, there is greater distortion of the bight portionsfrom the points between the ears 66 and the side of the support where the opposite parts of the bight start across the support and goover the line. This enhances the pulling of the helices on opposite sides of the line opposite to the bight apex and increases the reinforcement and gripping of the line at this point. There is greater resistance to turning of the support because there is an increased grip on the bight with the support and should the support tend to turn, the engagement of the arms 64 with the under side of the reinforcement and the line prevent such turning.

Having thus described the invention in some embodiments thereof, it will be understood that numerous and extensive departures may be made therefrom without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

We claim:

1. In combination with a 'line and a support, a line tie and guard, said line tie and guard comprising a pair of resilient helical members surrounding the line and extending in opposite directions from the support, a pair of said helical portions being disposed adjacent each other and in circumferential engagement with the line at the point of tangency of the line to the support, a bight portion conmeeting said helical members and in surrounding engagement with the support, said bight portion being distorted within its elastic limits when applied to the support to provide resilient tension on said adjacent line engaging portions to pull said portions and the line toward the support.

2. The combination as described in claim 1, wherein said bight portion includes a loop of 360 and a pair of legs are provided which are each a continuation of each of said helical portions and are disposed in gripping relation with said line.

3. The combination as described in claim 2, wherein said legs cross one another at an acute angle and said bight has a portion thereof that is bent within its elastic limits.

4. The combination as described in claim 3, wherein said legs also diverge from each at an angle and said bight has a portion that is twisted within its elastic limits, when the device is applied to a line.

5. In combination with a line and a support wherein the support has a circumferential groove and the line is disposed in the groove, means for holding the line in the groove and reinforce the line at the support comprising a plurality of preformed resilient helical wires having an open pitch and a diameter less than that of the line and preformed to provide a 360 bight portion, said wires being assembled to form a partial lay, said wires having a pitch length correlated to the diameter of the support such that when assembled with a support they provide a partial lay zone in contact with the support extending from a point on the support opposite to the point of tangency of the groove at its closest point to the support and having a zone extending laterally on each side of said point, second and third portions extending from said contact zone clockwise and counterclockwise to provide resilient spring energy storing means, fourth and fifth portions extending clockwise and counterclockwise from the second and .third portions in contact with the support at one end and into engagement with the line at the other end, sixth and seventh portions extending from said fourth and fifth portions in opposite directions to each other and in surrounding engagement with the line.

6. The combination as described in claim 5, wherein said second and third portions provide resilient means for pulling the fourth and fifth portions against the support to hold said line bottomed in the groove of the support and preventing the line from moving away therefrom in the presence of vibrations in the line.

7. The combination as described in claim 6, wherein said sixth and seventh portions reinforce the line at the point closest to the support and distribute the bending stresses of the line outwardly from the support.

8. The combination as described in claim 7, wherein said sixth and seventh portions provide a support for the line having the greatest resistance to bending movements at the support and a gradually decreasing resistance from said bending movement extending away from the support.

9. The combination as described in claim 5, wherein said partial lay zone opposite to the point of tangency of the line to the support has the exterior of the partial lay in contact with the support.

10. A combination as described in claim 5, wherein said partial lay zone opposite to the point of tangency of the line to the support has the edges of said partial lay in contact with the support.

11. In combination with a support of circular conformation having a horizontal axis and a groove extending therearound, a conductor strand disposed in the upper portion of said groove and being in tangential engagement with the bottom of the groove, means to hold said strand in said groove and in contact with said bottom comprising a plurality of helically preformed rods of resilient material having a pitch length such that they may be applied to the strand without permanent deformation, said rods being assembled as a partial lay to provide a ribbonlike helical member and being bent intermediate their ends to provide a bight, said bight being applied to said support opposite the point where the strand contacts the support and extending around said support for a zone extending laterally from said opposite point in contact with the support and then due to their helical conformation extending out of contact with the support for a short zone on each side of the support and finally at the point adjacent the strand contact again being in contact with the support and said legs being wrapped around the line and substantially covering the line for at least one-half of its circumference opposite the point of contact with the support and extending laterally from said point of contact.

12. The method of securing a strand to a support where the support has a circular groove running around the support in a vertical direction which comprises laying the line in a groove on the top side of the support, tensioning the line to the desired tension, holding the line in the support by applying a preformed helical ribbon-like member having a bight by placing the bight around the support, crossing the legs over on the side of the line opposite to the point of line contact with the support and then bending the bight by said legs at said cross over point to cause the legs to engage with the line and set up a bending stress in the bight, wrapping the legs around the line to cause the legs to encompass the line at the point opposite to the contact with the support and to cause a twisting stress in the bight, said bending and twisting stresses continuously drawing the line into contact with the support.

13. In combination with a line, a support and tie for said line, said support including a body portion and a pair of arms extending outwardly from the body portion, said body portion being formed to provide a groove extending at an angle therearound and tie means for engagernent with the line and support comprising a preformed resilient helical element having a bight portion and a pair of helical leg portions, said bight portion being disposed in the groove and extending over the line from opposite sides and said legs each being wrapped around the line and extending in opposite directions from the body portion along the line.

14. A device as described in claim 13, wherein said arms are disposed in contact with the underside of the line and said tie means.

15. A device as described in claim 14, wherein said body portion is formed with projecting parts on opposite sides extending in opposite directions and said parts defining one of the walls of said groove.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,947,504 8/ 1960 Ruhlman 248--63 3,042,745 7/1962 Williams 174123 3,069,491 12/1962 Hayden et a1. 174-173 3,127,140 3/1964 Quayle 248--63 FOREIGN PATENTS 938,881 10/1963 Great Britain.

CLAUDE A. LE ROY, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN COMBINATION WITH A LINE AND A SUPPORT, A LINE TIE AND GUARD, SAID LINE TIE AND GUARD COMPRISING A PAIR OF RESILIENT HELICAL MEMBERS SURROUNDING THE LINE AND EXTENDING IN OPPOSITE DIRECTIONS FROM THE SUPPORT, A PAIR OF SAID HELICAL PORTIONS BEING DISPOSED ADJACENT EACH OTHER AND IN CIRCUMFERENTIAL ENGAGEMENT WITH THE LINE AT THE POINT OF TANGENCY OF THE LINE TO THE SUPPORT, A BIGHT PORTION CONNECTING SAID HELICAL MEMBERS AND IN SURROUNDING ENGAGEMENT WITH THE SUPPORT, SAID BIGHT PORTION BEING DISTORTED WITHIN ITS ELASTIC LIMITS WHEN APPLIED TO THE SUPPORT TO PROVIDE RESILIENT TENSION ON SAID ADJACENT LINE ENGAGING PORTIONS TO PULL SAID PORTIONS AND THE LINE TOWARD THE SUPPORT. 